I have always loved road trips. I have always loved completely random trips. Ask anyone who knows me, I have a very odd sense of connection to my vehicles, and sometimes will spend hours in my car for no other reason other than to 'find myself' or 'recharge'. No plan, no destination, and often times I'm never more than a few miles from home just driving the familiar back roads.
That I have a dear friend who loves those things as much as I do, and adds the adventurous nature of exploring the world around him and wanting to always try something new or different together, is an amazing gift and blessing in my life.
So today, as we approached I-5, it was "we're at the 5, pick a direction" and north won out. Somewhere along the route Don had the fabulous idea of doing the Deception Pass/Whidbey Island.
Some may say the weather would hamper such a trip, and it may have limited our desire to explore outside, but I'm not "some'. I can have just as much fun just driving with small stops than I can doing a full day hike.
it's one of the often few upsides of being so relational.
One of our first little stops was at Pass Lake. The lake was partially frozen over and we couldn't resist the urge for photo ops, tossing some rocks and poking at the ice. It was truly a beautiful sight. The odd resonating echo the rocks make as they hit and slide across the ice is a very unique thing. We had fun chatting up a couple who clearly had the same idea. Finding rocks was a challenge, it's clearly a popular past time when the lake freezes over. A few jokes about walking on the ice, or the possible photo op of Don falling INTO the water (which he vehemently refused to do----no artistic vision, i swear) the chill in the air had us running back to the heated seats of his car.
We continued on to the definite standout in the trip. Deception Pass and the Bridge. The views are absolutely amazing here. The clear, green-blue water, the sharp rocks, the endless trees and stretching out before you the San Juans, and on a clear day, maybe even Canada in the far distance. Truly a sight to behold. Nature in her glory. There were few visitors to the area likely do to the weather, so a short hike through the trails was truly like walking completely alone in a virgin landscape.
A little monkeying around (and ignoring 7 foot high safety rules) on the bridge, and some quiet soaking up of the fabulous views of the beaches, we walked back up to soak up some history and trivia tidbits about the bridge.
Traveling farther onto the island, Don took a few random side roads to look at houses and fantasize about what each of us would do if we lived a life where these views greeted us each morning. We luckily happened upon a small (as far as we know unnamed) public slice of beach.
It was easily 5 degrees warmer here than at the bridge, if not more, and enjoying a stroll exploring the sandy beaches and marveling at the views was a little easier and a lot less chilly.
Through driving, we covered almost the entirety of Whidbey Island on the highway route, although part of that was somewhat of an accident when Don navigated us in the wrong direction from our intended route home. So busy talking and taking in the sights, I didn't make much of a navigator myself.
The bonus of that little 'accident', was getting to return our path the same way we came at sunset, and travel through parts of the area in the dark.
The sunset was allowed to peek through the parting clouds and was just wonderful. The mills/refineries of Anacortes and the area are hauntingly beautiful at night.
The night cleared up just enough that we could marvel at the stars. Another little detour down a darker country road for the chance to take a gander paid off.
Go alone. Go with a friend. Go with someone special. But don't let this little jaunt and all the offerings of Deception Pass, Whidbey Island and the surrounding area get left off your Bucket list.
A return trip in the summer time and when Don's cleared by his doctor's for a full on hike is already on mine. read more